One Of My Neighbours Was Taken..........

[Jeza]

Into hospital by emergency ambulance about a week ago. She lives alone, but carers come in 3 times a day to tend to her. Tonight a patient ambulance brought her home. This was at about 10.30 pm. The only reason I know this is I was in the kitchen at the time. I asked the ambulance people if her family had been informed that she was home. Dunno was the answer. I knocked on her door and asked if she needed anything. She gave me her son's phone number though a door she couldn't open and I rang him. This is an old woman who can't look after herself. As I type the son has not turned up. Are we so uncaring as a nation?

[Mojo-Jo-Jo]

Yo'd either have to be a cynic or know the man from birth to make that kind of a sweeping statement I think Jeza.

[Ann]

How sad is that Jeza - poor lady being on her own, helpless like that. It's my worst fear, as we have no children to look after us if we end up like that .... what on earth would we/I do? Well done Jeza for looking out for her, you are kind x

[Jeza]

It was not a sweeping statement it was an observation. That's all.

[Jeza]

We have no family either Ann. I worry what will happen when one of us is left alone.

[Ann]

We have some lovely friends though who mean so much to us, also I do have some nieces, so not totally alone! Do you have many friends Jeza - I think there used an organisation called "befriend" but not sure if it ran everywhere in the country.............

[petal54]

I suspect hospital transport over worked & hospitals take forever to discharge folk.couldn't the son've collected his mother,this is usually prefered method where pos.

[RATTER15]

if you are alone and or vulnerable you would probably qualify for an alert system, a button that you wear around you neck or on your wrist, maybe even voice activated, if you need something you just press a button, this will alert a support line which will open a 2 way communication via your telephone (no you dont need to pick up the telephone, if you are unable to respond then an immediate neighbour may call in or failing that an emergency ambulance will attend.

Its a bit different if you fall and seriously injured and unable to press the button, there are ways around this as well for epileptics etc with motion sensitive equipment.